Alibis Fail To Win Acquittal For Two In Shooting Of Deer

The alibis of two Lehigh Township men failed yesterday to persuade Northampton County Judge Robert A. Freedberg to acquit them of charges of shooting a deer out of season.

Judge Freedberg found Donald Kenneth Person, 41, and Daniel Tomsic, 67, guilty of unlawful taking, killing and possession of game. Person was fined $300 and Tomsic, $200. Judge Freedberg also ordered that the men be denied hunting licenses and trapping privileges in the state for three years.

They had previously been found guilty in April 1984 by District Justice Harold Weaver of Danielsville, and appealed his decision to county court.

Person and Tomsic were charged with shooting an antlerless deer in Moore Township on Feb. 25, 1984.

Person and Tomsic said that they spent most of that Saturday - starting at 9:30 a.m. - drinking and playing pool at the Rockville Hotel. Two witnesses, Raymond Tomsic, Daniel's brother and the proprietor of the tavern, and Edward Gower, said that they saw the two at the hotel.

Northampton County Assistant District Attorney Richard Pepper asked Raymond Tomsic if Person had been playing pool. Tomsic said, "Naw. He just drinks."

Person said, "The truth is, I got drunk there," and had to be driven home late that afternoon or evening. "I do that every Saturday

Tomsic denied he killed the deer or saw it that day. "I didn't even kill one in hunting season," he said in response to questioning by attorney James Heidecker, who represented both him and Person.

Charles Seibert of Mountain View Drive, Moore Township, said he saw Person dragging the deer away the morning of Feb. 25. Person dropped the deer when he spotted Seibert, picked up his rifle and left the area, Seibert said.

Seibert then had his wife call the game warden while he got a neighbor to view the carcass. After he took the neighbor home, he saw a pick-up truck parked on the road. He thought the truck held the game warden, arriving earlier than he had expected, and drove up to the vehicle.

However, instead of the game warden, he saw Daniel Tomsic get into the passenger's seat of the truck, which backed out the road and departed when it reached paved highway, Seibert said. He said there was a canvas-covered bundle in the back of the truck. He wrote down the license number on the truck and turned it over to the state game wardens.

The deer carcass had disappeared.

Deputy Game Warden James Hoppes Jr. identified pictures that showed where the deer had lain and where it had been dragged. Another picture showed entrails where the deer had been gutted. Hoppes said the bodies of two unborn fawns were included with the entrails.